DAVENPORT & Co LLC Purchases 20,178 Shares of Altria Group, Inc. $MO

DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 226,032 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,178 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $13,033,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Altria Group by 1.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 72,367,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,315,438,000 after acquiring an additional 886,583 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 19.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 19,567,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,285,575,000 after purchasing an additional 3,172,753 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Altria Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,705,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,103,543,000 after purchasing an additional 59,189 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Altria Group by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,747,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $842,122,000 after purchasing an additional 132,846 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Altria Group by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 12,131,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $801,412,000 after purchasing an additional 47,757 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MO shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on Altria Group from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Argus raised Altria Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Altria Group from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Altria Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Charles N. Whitaker sold 27,908 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.57, for a total value of $1,885,743.56. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 180,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,221,318.33. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE:MO opened at $63.77 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $65.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.52. The company has a market capitalization of $106.61 billion, a PE ratio of 15.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.45. Altria Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.82 and a 1-year high of $70.51.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.02). Altria Group had a net margin of 29.84% and a negative return on equity of 287.61%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 25th. Altria Group’s payout ratio is 103.16%.

Altria Group Profile

Altria Group, Inc (NYSE: MO) is a U.S.-based consumer goods company whose principal business is the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company’s operations are focused primarily on the U.S. market and include the production, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars. Its flagship cigarette franchise in the United States is sold through its operating subsidiaries and is among the most recognizable cigarette brands in the country.

Altria’s principal operating businesses include Philip Morris USA (cigarettes), U.S.